HKTDC: Hong Kong products enjoy positive reviews from mainland online shoppers

Online shoppers mostly buy electronic, luxury, and fashion goods from Hong Kong.

Chinese mainland consumers favour online shopping for Hong Kong products and view brands as high-quality, reputable, and authentic, according to a report released by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC).

Results of their consumer survey said that 78% of the respondents purchased Hong Kong products online in the past year.

HKTDC’s report highlighted that mainland online shoppers mostly buy electronic, luxury and fashion goods from Hong Kong. They shop online frequently, averaging 9.4 purchases per month. By age group, consumers aged 30-49 demonstrate the highest online shopping frequency, averaging 11.2 purchases per month.

The results of the survey showed that mainland online shoppers hold positive views of Hong Kong products and brands, giving an average score of 8.7 to Hong Kong products.

Genuine products, reputable merchants, and wide product selection are the most important considerations for the respondents.

The study also showed that comprehensive e-commerce platforms are the predominant online shopping channel, with 95% of respondents using comprehensive/digital shelf e-commerce platforms to shop online. This figure far exceeds the use of live-streaming/short video platforms (38%) and group buying platforms (32%).

In terms of online shopping for cross-border or imported products, consumers prefer to use Tmall International or JD International, with 73% and 63% respectively choosing these platforms. Other notable platforms include Douyin E-commerce Global (30%) and Amazon China (21%).

“When shopping online, mainland consumers’ primary consideration is whether the products are genuine, not low prices. This suggests that Hong Kong businesses can leverage the superior quality of Hong Kong products and the strong reputation of Hong Kong brands in mainland China to expand into the mainland e-commerce market,” HKTDC Director of Research, Irina Fan, said.

HKTDC Research commissioned an agency to conduct a survey of 2,200 middle-income or above consumers from different mainland cities during the second and third quarters of 2024.